If cinema is entertainment, the film we are now writing about is great cinema and great entertainment. It's about Assassination on the Orient Express signed by the English director Kenneth Branagh and based on the famous novel by Agatha Christie. Those who have read the titles of the English writer and for those who have already seen her illustrious previous film version of 1974 (signed by Sidney Lumet and starring the likes of Ingrid Bergman, Laureen Bacal or Sean Connery) of course will find nothing new in the structure and in the content of the story but, in this case, returning once again to the scene of the crime is certainly satisfying.
The story is simple and takes place in the carriages of the famous and luxurious train that connects Istanbul with London. A blizzard blocks it and, during the night, a passenger is killed in mysterious circumstances. It is also on board Inspector Hercule Poirot called to solve a very difficult investigation. It is not just a "normal" murder: behind the dagger that kills the victim there is a second story (inspired by a real story: the kidnapping and death of the son of the famous aviator Charles Lindbergh) which will be the key that will allow the solution of the crime.
It is a noir, a detective story, and therefore it is unlikely that anything can be written that would have you on the trail of who, why and how the murder took place. Instead, we can tell you about what makes this film, in our opinion, among the best seen in this film season. Someone could make comparisons with the previous film which won an Oscar in 1975, but it would be an improper comparison: education, language and cinematographic culture have profoundly changed compared to the 70s.
In this re-enactment the cast is first rate: Poirot is the same director Branagh, already nominated for 5 Oscars and other various film awards, with solid and consolidated Shakespearian dramaturgical experience – it can be clearly seen in this film – and is accompanied by other performers of equal ability: Johnny Deep, Penelope Cruz, Michelle Pfeiffer, just to name the best known . The English drama school doesn't give anyone discounts and the results are visible.
The screenplay is well packaged: the dialogues are tight, the times are correct, the editing respects the expectations, the lights, the photography, the environments are all refined, accurate, detailed. Long sequences as rarely seen yet, albeit with the support of special effects in post-production. We mention one above all, when the train stops poised on a wooden bridge and the camera starts from a long panoramic shot and arrives at a close-up of a protagonist inside a car: flawless. Another scene with a high symbolic value: all the protagonists are lined up on one side of a large table and it is not difficult to see a sort of "last supper" where everyone represents his or her drama. The final sequence, in the train station immersed in the snow, where Inspector Poirot gets off to give the police the version of events is to be framed for its colors and suggestion. The train itself, with the locomotive shot from different angles, represents a formidable icon of travel, and that of the Orient Express is so in its almost absolute form. It should be noted that, among the producers, there is a certain Ridley Scott who knows something about great cinema and great entertainment.
The film often indulges excessively in detail and in engaging images that seem to be inserted more to please the viewer than to make the unfolding of the plot more compelling. Final note: do not exit immediately when the credits roll. The final piece of music deserves to stay in the room for three minutes.
We will soon review a new investigation by Poirot, called to Egypt in search of a murderer on the Nile.
